Saquon Barkley Remains Committed To Giants; Team Not Shopping Players

Injuries on offense have led the way in the Giants going from the 2022 divisional round to tumbling to 1-5. They remain without several offensive linemen, and Daniel Jones is week-to-week with his neck injury. Deadline sellers in the past, the Giants will have a decision to make on Saquon Barkley.

The sides trudged through an arduous negotiation this offseason, and while they bridged gaps on AAV and guarantees, no deal came to pass before the July 17 franchise tag extension deadline. Barkley, however, did not follow through on a rumored holdout into Week 1; the sixth-year running back quickly agreed to an adjusted deal to return to the Giants for training camp. With the Giants being unable to renegotiate until after the season, Barkley has a clear path to free agency.

A second Giants tag, at just more than $12MM, could conceivably be in play. But the team may not be keen on setting that amount aside for a running back, especially one that has battled injuries — including a September high ankle sprain — over the course of his career. The Giants will have the option of trading their top skill-position player before the Oct. 31 deadline. Despite the occasionally acrimonious negotiations this offseason, Barkley is rooting against relocating from New York.

“Everyone knows I don’t want to get traded,” Barkley said, via the New York Post’s Ryan Dunleavy. “Obviously, I’ve been vocal and public about how I feel about this organization and where I want to be. Knowing the business and seeing that side of it, there’s a lot of things I can’t control. I don’t think anybody in their right mind would want to get traded anywhere. It’s not an easy thing to do: You’ve got to move. I have a family. I would love to be here.”

Barkley, 26, has said many times he wants to stay with the Giants for the rest of his career. The Giants not tagging him again would test him here, and a crowded 2024 RB market — even without Jonathan Taylor, who just signed a $14MM-per-year Colts extension — may not reward him on the level of what he turned down from the Giants in July. The Giants moving their AAV number south of $12MM per year, as they bumped the offer’s guarantee toward the $22MM ballpark, prompted Barkley to pass and play on the $10.1MM tag. It is unclear if the $22MM guarantee number represented the guarantee at signing or the injury guarantee; Taylor received $19MM locked in at signing but $26.5MM in practical guarantees due to the contract’s structure.

Were a team to take on Barkley’s contract after Week 7, it would owe more than $5MM in prorated salary. That might not seem prohibitive for a buyer, but considering the trade markets Taylor and Austin Ekeler encountered this year, the Giants might not see a great return for the two-time Pro Bowler. But it would be a deal the team would probably consider, Barkley’s popularity notwithstanding, as he is in a contract year.

The Giants have traded the likes of Eli Apple, Damon Harrison and Markus Golden before past deadlines; they moved Kadarius Toney to the Chiefs last year. In its second season, the Brian Daboll–Joe Schoen regime is not shopping players at this point, ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler notes.

Barkley came up in trade talks during the 2022 offseason, but after three injury-truncated seasons, the 2018 Offensive Rookie of the Year bounced back and powered the Giants to a surprising playoff berth. He returned from his high ankle sprain in Week 6, gaining 93 rushing yards on 24 carries to help the Giants scare the Bills despite coming in as two-touchdown underdogs.

The team’s current record will likely prevent New York from venturing to back-to-back postseasons, but no notable Barkley trade buzz has circulated. While this situation could change before the deadline, Barkley is on track to finish out his tag year in the Big Apple.